Report Shows City Enjoying Robust Period Of Development

Aurora — The city is booming on every development front, from job growth to residential construction, according to the annual report of the Aurora Economic Development Commission.

During 1995, the city attracted companies, including five listed on the Fortune 500, that are expected to hire 2,600 people in the next few years, the report said. Of those jobs, 1,500 would be in manufacturing, according to the report.

Perhaps most significant was the city's attracting a manufacturing and distribution complex for Warner-Elektra-Atlantic Corp., one of the country's major music labels. It is expected to hire 500 people.

The city also saw the opening of the Michael Jordan Golf Center and the construction of a brew pub in the old railroad roundhouse by a partnership that includes Chicago Bears great Walter Payton.

Although an effort by Mayor David Pierce to attract the Bears to town failed, it spurred development of a site on the far east side that will be home to the 900-acre Butterfield Center for Business and Industry. The center will be developed by a group headed by Chicago restaurateur Larry Levy. That project is expected to generate as many as 5,000 jobs.

The city also annexed 2,124 acres during 1995, making it one of the biggest development years in the city's history, according to the report.